201410 – Catlow – Auckland Electrification – Commissioning and Interfaces

This paper explains the testing and commissioning of the electrification system in Auckland, including the 25kV AC distribution equipment, the overhead line, the incoming power supply and the earthing and bonding of the various metallic elements of the railway.

At the time of writing, all of the electrification commissioning has been completed, but integration tests between the railway infrastructure and third parties (such as telecommunications system operators and Transpower) and between the railway infrastructure and the trains continue as the fleet size increases and electric trains commence operations on wider areas of the network. Such tests will continue well into 2015 and the delivery of the last trains.

This paper describes each type of test that has been carried out so as to provide a narrative on what has been undertaken. As a result, the technical content is necessarily brief so as to provide breadth of coverage.